Although the area of fluid applicator art for shoes is crowded, there is room for improvement of fluid applicators of this type. For example, while a number of conventional fluid applicators comprise a plurality of mechanical elements and/or components that are designed to cooperatively function in a predetermined manner, many fluid applicators of this type, as a practical matter, often do not function entirely as desired. That is, a fluid passageway or an orifice may plug or leak; a valve or a biasing element may jam; or mechanical elements (or components)--although designed to sealingly engage together--may not seat properly. Any one of the several aforementioned occurrences may result in the conventional fluid applicator functioning in a less-than-desired manner.
Occasionally, failure of only one of the often several mechanical elements and/or components may even render the conventional fluid applicator totally useless with respect to its intended purpose. For example, undesired fluid leakage can result when a single orifice, or a single valve, fails to close or seat properly. When the fluid is black shoe polish, such fluid leakage is, of course, generally totally unacceptable.
The present fluid applicator is configured not only to virtually eliminate pluggage of its discharge aperture (or discharge orifice) but also to keep its fluid passageway and associated valve means unclogged as well. To achieve this end, the present fluid applicator includes a valve means which seals automatically when not in use (the details of which will be further discussed hereinbelow). Still further, the present fluid applicator is relatively simple in construction, an important operational consideration.